Brotherhood | Franciscans of Life

Transformation

We had a great couple of days for Project Joseph and the Franciscans of Life!

On Saturday, March 21st, the Franciscans of Life attended the 5th Catholic Men’s Conference of the Archdiocese of Miami. The event, which featured Catholic apologist Tim Staples, took place at St. Mark Catholic Church. We represented Project Joseph along with some of the mentors of Respect Life Ministry.

Our display included some literature and a poster describing the roots of Project Joseph and where it is today. It also featured pictures that the Project Joseph dads allowed us to share, either of their classes or of their beautiful children.

The event was well attended, and we had a chance to talk with several men, some of whom were dads themselves, and present to them information about Project Joseph, as well as invite them to our upcoming workshop.

On Monday, March 23rd we had the joy of receiving Brother Luis as a novice. He received the name Brother Luis Charbel, FFV.

As a secular brother, Br. Charbel exchanges the cord that holds the wooden tau around his neck from a brown one to a red one. The red signifies the Sacred Blood shed by Christ during His Passion, and constitutes for Br. Charbel a reminder that he is called to “obey as Christ obeyed, without murmuring, complaints and resentment”, in order to “live perfect charity as Christ taught us on the cross”.

The exchange of the color and the reception of a new name are for the secular Franciscan of Life “an outward sign of his desire for transformation from the old man enslaved by sin to the new man, liberated by the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ”.It was a beautiful and moving reception, attended by the regular and secular Franciscans of Life and their families. Brother Jay directed the ceremony, and Brother Bernardo offered a reflection on the call and life of the secular brothers.

In the next days we will feature more news about FFV and Project Joseph…stay tuned! 🙂

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on March 28, 2015 at 10:11 PM Leave a Comment

True and charitable obedience — pleasing to God and neighbor

Pope Francis and Franciscans of the Immaculate

It seems that these days everyone wants to gripe and whine about the pope, bishops, and the synod on the family, the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or the Mass of Paul VI (Novus Ordo). Then there are such subjects as abortion, same-sex marriage, contraception, divorce, remarriage and Holy Communion and women’s ordination.

Yesterday, I saw another article claiming that Pope Francis has done great harm to Summorum Pontificum, the document written by Pope Benedict clarifying that the Tridentine form of the mass for the Roman Rite was changed a bit by Pope St. John XXIII, but never abrogated. The gist of this complaint is that allegedly Pope Francis told the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate that they may not celebrate the Tridentine Form without asking for specific permission to do so. To some people, this is a form oppression and a violation of law.

To get past this point, let’s clarify that the Franciscans of the Immaculate were never founded to be a Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) community. When they were founded, the Mass of Paul VI or Novus Ordo was the ordinary form of the mass for the Latin Church. Secondly, Summorum Pontificum clearly states that the superior general alone can make rules about who and when the TLM is celebrated in public or in community, but he must make these rules in keeping with the proper laws of his institute. This means that he must look at the constitutions of his institute and see what they say about the older rite and the newer rite, if they say anything at all. In most cases the constitutions do not speak to this point, because they were written before this became a hot question. Therefore, there is nothing in proper law that allows a superior permission to make the Extraordinary Form of the mass (TLM) to become the norm for his community. The question needs to be put on the table to the community to vote on. Once the community votes on it, the Holy See must approve the change that is to be made to the constitutions.

Let’s remember that the Franciscans of the Immaculate, like any other religious community owe obedience to the Holy Father. At the end of the day, the Holy Father is the legitimate superior general of every institute in the Catholic Church, because he alone exercises universal jurisdiction. Therefore, we cannot accuse the pope of overstepping his boundaries or of abusing power. If you have the power to do something or to prohibit something and you make use of it, how can it be an abuse?

Some will argue that the pope cannot use his power to do harm. This is true. No one can use power to do harm. Power is given to us for the common good. There are times when we use power with the intention of doing something good and somewhere in the process something goes wrong and the end result hurts more than it helps. This was not the intention of the person exercising the power. This was the result of many random acts that were against the idea in the first place. In this case, one can say that the end result was that the lay faithful who were benefiting from the TLM celebrated by the priests of the Franciscans of the Immaculate no longer had that benefit. Obviously, they were hurt by Pope Francis’ decision to stop the TLM among the Franciscans of the Immaculate. Did the Pope intend to hurt these folks? I don’t think so. He intended to put out a fire within the Franciscans of the Immaculate.

This does not mean that the TLM is prohibited or that the Franciscans of the Immaculate are being suppressed. It means that people who had come to depend on the Franciscans of the Immaculate to provide a TLM mass have to look elsewhere, which is an inconvenience. In fairness to the Pope and to the friars, this congregation was never founded for the explicit purpose of celebrating the mass in the Extraordinary Form (TLM Form). The congregation’s mission is to walk the Gospel in the footsteps of St. Maximilian Kolbe and St. Francis of Assisi under the protection and patronage of the Immaculate.

Did something go wrong? Yes. I don’t know what went wrong. I’m not a member of that community. I can see what’s going wrong outside of the community. Pope Benedict XVI started an investigation into the Franciscans of the Immaculate, not Pope Francis. Pope Francis inherited it, but almost everyone blames Pope Francis for it. Like most popes, Pope Francis is not too enthusiastic about people using the mass for their political battles. Therefore he restricts the permission to use the Tridentine Form to those who have specific permission to use it. He never said that it could not be used. He said that one must ask first.

Whatever Summorum Pontificum says about what priest can celebrate the Extraordinary Form of the mass, we cannot forget that the Motu Proprio does not bind the pope, including the one who wrote it, much less the pope who succeeds him. He is free to abrogate it, edit it and interpret it. It is not up to us to tell the pope what he can or cannot do with law.

Boniface VIII in “Constit.” reminds us that the sovereign pontiff is the most fruitful source of . . . law; he can abrogate . . . legislate to the whole Church or part thereof, a country, or a given body of individuals . . . he is not legally obliged to obtain the consent of any other persons and his power is limited only by Divine law.

Another important point here is that this is a situation between a pope and a religious community of Pontifical Right. Meaning . . . that the pope is the highest ranking superior, above whom there is no appeal and who has absolute authority over the religious community. He need not speak ex cathedra to be obeyed. If we look at the writings of St. Francis, he promises obedience to the Bishop of Rome, commands that all the brothers obey him and his canonically elected successors for all time. In essence, Francis binds everyone to obey the pope, regardless of the matter involved, except sin. To put it more bluntly, it’s not for any of us, outside of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, to demand to know what happens within the community or to speak as if we had the authority to make a judgment on a situation that does not fall under our jurisdiction.

We must not lose sight of the fact that the good brothers have not asked us for our help, comments, opinions and interventions. These are well educated men, free to ask for help if they need it, and who have a good understanding of how the legal system in the Church works, should they choose to make use of it. Instead, it seems that they have chosen to apply one of our Seraphic Father’s admonitions.

The Lord says in the Gospel: he “that doth not renounce all that he possesses cannot be” a “disciple “and “he that will save his life, shall lose it.” That man leaves all he possesses and loses his body and his soul who abandons himself wholly to obedience in the hands of his superior, and whatever he does and says—provided he himself knows that what he does is good and not contrary to his [the superior’s] will—is true obedience. And if at times a subject sees things which would be better or more useful to his soul than those which the superior commands him, let him sacrifice his will to God, let him strive to fulfil the work enjoined by the superior. This is true and charitable obedience which is pleasing to God and to one’s neighbor.

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on March 7, 2015 at 3:30 PM Comments (2)

Thank you!

The season of Lent has begun, in which the Church unites herself to Jesus in the desert (CCC 540) and invites us all to engage in spiritual exercises, penitential liturgies, voluntary self-denial, and fraternal sharing (CCC 1438). All these, of course, as part of our lifelong process of conversion.

Lent is violet time…

“And when the Lord your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers…take care lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery … remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart” (Dt 6:10-12, 8:2)

Indeed, this is not a time of mourning, but a time to look back in order to move forward; a time to make ours the invitation that was made to the Church in Ephesus: “Remember from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” (Rv 2:5) It is a time to examine our consciences, that is, in the words of the Holy Father Francis on January 1st, a time “through which we review what has happened; we thank the Lord for every good we have received and have been able to do and, at the same time, we think again of our failings and our sins”.

“To give thanks and to ask for forgiveness”. In particular, would add the Pope in this year’s message for Lent, by confronting the culture of indifference, striving to become “islands of mercy in a sea of indifference”.

In this context, we wanted to begin by giving thanks, first and foremost to the Lord, and immediately afterwards to you.

You see, on January 1st we “manifested without fear our needs” in the form of an article that expressed a simple question: “Can you help?“.

In the following weeks, we received much support from you, and we were greatly moved by how you helped us meet our needs, particularly now that we have more brothers in formation in the motherhouse.

The first challenge met was the replacement of the toaster. We have been blessed with an “upgrade”: a toaster-oven that has been our companion beyond breakfast and has even allowed us to save some energy 🙂

Breakfast time!

Shortly afterwards, the second challenge was met: the replacement of an old mattress. Here, too, we were greatly blessed: the new mattress came with certain features to help the brothers that suffer from backaches; it also came with a pillow!

1024px-Sanzio,_Raffaello_-_Putti_(Madonna_Sistina)_-_1512-1513

How the brothers feel on the new mattress

Last but not least, we tackled the leak problem in the AC unit and the hole in the ceiling. The issue got worse before it got better. One day, an additional dripping began, a few inches away from the opening…but right on top of the kitchen table!!

However, we had already set aside enough to be able (we hoped!) to pay for the repairs. That same day the repair crew found and fixed several issues with the AC unit, and finally they tackled the hole in the ceiling. The latter was no small task! The repair required opening up that spot on the ceiling, inserting two layers of wood, and finally sealing the opening.

As easy as 1, 2, 3? Not quite…!

Again, THANK YOU for being there for us. This has been a very edifying experience for us. Be assured that you are always in our prayers.

Last but not least, we should mention our brother who is pursuing doctoral studies. He has been working with dedication, while pursuing with great love the formation time. You can see him below, presenting a final project!

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on February 22, 2015 at 11:25 AM Leave a Comment

Walking for Life

Every year, Respect Life hosts a “Walk for Life” at Archbishop McCarthy High School to support the Hollywood Pregnancy Center, which provides counseling, education, material assistance, and support to men and women in crisis pregnancies.

It is not uncommon for the three-hour event to witness hundreds of “walkers” who are animated by great music, refreshments, and the Holy Rosary. The event also provides an opportunity for students to earn community service hours.

This year, some of our brothers joined the Walk. It was a great time; we even made some new friends!

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on January 17, 2015 at 10:04 PM Leave a Comment

“Good night, son!”

“Pax et bonum”! I am very happy to wish you a blessed new year and to share with you the highlights of my first week of postulancy in residence at the Franciscans of Life motherhouse. I hope you like it!

It has been great to begin my residency during the Christmas season.

In retrospective, I can see I experienced both the great solemnity of the Nativity and the secular “holiday” of New Year as times of “glad tidings”, of a new beginning, as well as a reminder that Christ lives. “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it”, says the Lord. And St. Paul, who was no “forgetful listener”, would say: “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me”.

In short: this first week was for me the time to welcome the birth of Christ in my heart and embrace Him in my brothers.

Arriving to the motherhouse was not a new experience, but this time it took a whole new aspect. I wasn’t just visiting. I was at home, now.

After settling in, I was invited to go to evening mass at the nearby parish of St Boniface. It felt great to begin this way. As Brother Jay always reminds us, “everything begins at the beginning”. I was very happy to attend this mass with my brothers and to pray Vespers with them afterwards, before the Blessed Sacrament.

This would be the first “in residence” taste of the fraternal liturgical life. Little did I know (I say this with great joy!) that this would become the “heart and soul”of my daily life of love!

The life in fraternity is “in common” in many ways. We strive to serve one another and to meet each other’s needs. We all seek to love and be loved, and in the life of the regular brothers we are always attentive to each other’s needs for spiritual support, safety, and affection.

The common life is also very practical. Our community embraces early Franciscan poverty in which the brothers did not just share common property. We simply have what is strictly necessary. For this purpose, Father Superior worked right away on the motherhouse weekly schedule to meet the needs of a postulant student brother and assure that I can continue my formation while pursuing my first doctoral degree – all the while living the peaceful and joyful life of penance of the Franciscans of Life.

My days begin at the “cella” (pronounced like “shell”), where I sleep “at a pillow’s distance” from Father Superior. It is always a joyful experience, as we encounter one another in awakening and, shortly afterwards, our Lord in the prayer of Lauds.

Due to the diminute size of the “cella”, the brothers must take turns; one brother takes care of the beds while the other lights the candles at our little prayer table, before the icon of the Immaculate and the crucifix of San Damiano. It is here that we keep the prayer intentions entrusted to us. On one day in which my turn came around for the latter and I was particularly sleepy, I recalled the words of an earlier liturgical reading: “Awake, sleeper!”. For a moment, I thought I could feel the Lord’s eyes on me…but when I turned around, I realized it was Father’s glance! “Are you done waking up, or do you need a hand?” 🙂

Having warmed up the soul with prayer, we take care of the rest with breakfast (and, not uncommonly, some laughter!) On more than one occasion I “showcased my cooking skills” by preparing some awesome toasts with coffee (although I ought to admit that the greater merit goes to the new toaster oven that we recently received from a kind benefactor).

What happens in the mornings depends on the daily schedule.

Most weekdays we coordinate our schedules for academics and apostolate, and we often share the community car by planning our daily trip accordingly. Several days, however, the morning begins with a formation class in topics such as spiritual theology, sacred liturgy, and Franciscan studies.

Saturday is dedicated in a particular way to prayer and to taking care of the motherhouse. Once a month, we dedicate it to a full day of prayer and recollection. This week, however, was my opportunity to “brush up” my broom and mop skills 😉

Sunday is our family day. Usually, we begin the day by going to the nearby parish of St. Maximilian Kolbe to attend mass.

Once a month, however, we also travel to Miami, to the mission of Sts. Francis and Clare, where I serve as acolyte for the local Latin Mass Community. While we worship in community in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite, Father Superior and the brothers know that I have been an E.F. altar server for several years with great joy and to my spiritual benefit. They have kindly accommodated for me to be able to continue to do so without turning the extraordinary into the norm.

The weekday afternoon usually includes some free time for spiritual reading, private prayer, a walk around the lake, and (for me, in a special way) time for homework. This doesn’t mean I am “off the hook” for an afternoon formation class, however! 🙂

Saturday afternoon is often the occasion to buy the necessary groceries for the week and take care of the needs of our lovely companions Max and Tasha.

On Family Day, it is not uncommon to spend the afternoon at a nearby park, alternating times of prayerful contemplation to times of joy and fun.

The evening is usually marked by attending daily Mass followed by Vespers, in turn followed by supper.

Something beautiful happens on Monday evenings, as the regular and secular brothers gather for the weekly “chapter”. This is one of my favorite experiences of our fraternity life – to welcome all the brothers and be welcomed with a warm embrace, and then pray Vespers together, receive formation, plan our joint efforts in our common service to the voiceless, and also share weekly experiences.

It is written: “How good and how pleasant it is, when brothers dwell together as one!” This is exactly what I experience at our “family meetings”, as the secular brothers, who are husbands and fathers, enrich us with the experience of a Catholic family life, and at the same time allow us to share with them the fruits of peace and good that we find in the celibate life in community.

At the end, Father Superior sends the secular brothers back to their families with a warm embrace. This is a very moving moment, but it is also a reminder that I must retreat to the “cella”, for this evening is the time for the regular brothers to have the Chapter of Faults. The regular brothers recollect, as Father Superior enters the cell and sits quietly. One by one, we “come into the light, that our deeds may be manifested”.

When my turn comes, I kneel before Father Superior, entrusting myself to his justice and mercy, and opening myself to my brothers, as I accuse myself of my faults against the Holy Rule and our Constitutions. After receiving Father Superior’s firm but gentle correction, I prostrate before the Crucified Lord and, arms outstretched, I recite my Confiteor. As I hear Father’s words “Arise, in the name of the Lord”, and I sit down amidst my brothers, I have the unshakable certainty that despite my limitations, my Superior and my brothers still love me. As Brother Leo steps forward, I glance at the eyes of the Crucified. Those eyes, and the peace in my heart, are enough to make me wish to leap for joy. But I remain recollected, as I recall the words of our Holy Father St. Francis: “Let us begin, for up to now we have done nothing.”

The night finishes with a visit to His Majesty, who in the Blessed Sacrament awaits for us at the St. Francis chapel of a nearby parish.

Before walking into the chapel, Father Superior guides us through a review of our day. This is one of the most meaningful times of the day for me, as I can rejoice at the good experiences of the day and analyze missed opportunities to encounter and serve Christ, in order to see what got in the way and what can I do better.

After a time of adoration, we lift our cowls and we let the words of Compline echo silently before His face: “Lord, now you let your servant go in peace…”.

We return to the motherhouse and retreat into our “cella”, our beloved cloister. Lights go off. I lay down in bed “and sleep comes at once”. It’s been a good day, I tell myself. The night is silent. I thank God for the present moment, for the love, and for the gift of a life of penance in service to the voiceless.

And just as I am about to fall asleep, a pillow hits me. “Good night, son!”

Br. Bernardo, FFV

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on January 15, 2015 at 1:34 PM Leave a Comment

Can you help?

First of all, we would like to wish everyone of our friends a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year. As we go through the Christmas season, let us remember the true meaning of this joyous occasion. This was not just another historical birth. This was the historical birth of our God
and Savior. He came to us as a real person in real time to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our redemption.

Secondly, the Franciscans of Life would like to make an appeal for your help. We need to fix some things around the house and replace others. We do not charge for our services to those in crisis pregnancies, the immigrant poor or those who are terminally ill. Like our father St. Francis before us, we depend on Divine Providence to provide for us. God has never let us down. He has always provided for us through you, our friends.

Here’s the situation we have.

Our toaster is broken. One has to stand by holding down the slider or it will not toast. A replacement will cost us about $15.00 to $20.00.

One of our brothers is sleeping on a mattress with a flat side and it’s beginning to affect his sciatica. We need about $160.00 to replace it. It’s a very old mattress, about 15 years old. It was donated to us many years ago.

Finally, we have a leak from the air conditioning unit, which is upstairs. The water has caused a hole to open up over the kitchen table. We have been keeping a pot under the hole to catch the drip until we get enough money to fix the damaged pipe and replace the piece of the ceiling. Repairing the pipe, closing the opening in the ceiling and painting will cost over $200.00 that we don’t have.

In all, we need to raise about $380. While we would rather not bother our friends, we have few resources. St. Francis taught us to apply to the table of the Lord in such situations; therefore, we are reaching out to you.

As superior, I am responsible for the health, education and welfare of my brothers. Currently, one of our brothers is working on his PhD, which is a rather expensive proposition. We’re very proud of him. He’s not only a remarkable brother, he’s also a brilliant student and we love him very much. His education will save many lives. Other brothers bring no income from their apostolic work. Your support is a much needed blessing.

If you can afford to donate something, please help us. You can donate using PayPal or check. All donations are tax deductible as Franciscans of Life are a 501(c)3.

May God bless you for your generosity!

Click on “gifts” on the right hand column or go to

http://www.franciscansoflife.org/HowToHelp.html

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on January 1, 2015 at 3:39 PM Comments Off

As He is in the light . . .

The Franciscans of Life have had an exciting week. It all began with Brother Bernardo arriving at the mother house on Sunday and Brother Leo Belanger on Monday. Both are in different stages of formation, but in formation nonetheless. It is exciting to watch our little family grow. We began with two brothers, of which only one has persevered. But today there are many more of us. With the grace of God, more will follow.

Brother Jay attended mass in the Extraordinary Form at the Mission Chapel Sts. Francis and Clare, the patriarch and matriarch of the Franciscan family. Contrary to what some extreme Traditionalist bloggers are saying about Franciscans, the people at the mission were very happy to see two Franciscans in the congregation. They were very gracious and welcoming. Some thanked Father Superior for allow the brothers to attend the TLM.

We don’t attend mass in the extraordinary form as the norm. Our constitutions are very clear,

That which is extraordinary cannot be imposed on the brothers, nor may the brothers choose to make it the norm. The brothers are bound to think with the Church. As long as this form is extraordinary, the brothers shall make use of it as such.

However, the constitution is very clear that there is no prohibition on the brothers attending the mass in the old form, as long as every brother in the house agrees to attend. Liturgy is central to the fraternal life. On Sunday, the Lord gifted us with a very nice liturgy and many new friends. I think that we will be going back to visit Saints Francis and Clare Mission, especially because we have brothers who are attached to the Latin Mass Community and to the TLM. Currently, the plan is to attend once a month. Plans are never written in stone. It can be more or less frequently in the future. Man proposes and God disposes.

On Monday night, the secular and the regular brothers gathered at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church in Pembroke Pines for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception where we celebrated a beautiful mass in the Ordinary Form. At the end of mass, Rev. Giovanni Peña, Vicar at St. Maxx, blessed the Miraculous Medals and the brothers, after Brother Jay had led them in the consecration to the Immaculate, as prescribed by St. Maximilian Kolbe.

It was a beautiful event. There were professed brothers present, novices, postulants and aspirants. It was just absolutely awesome to have our entire family consecrated to the Immaculate at the same time. I think that the most beautiful part of it, along with the consecration to the Immaculate, is the fact that all of our brothers are friends. We’re not just a group of random individuals who came together to start a new branch of the Franciscan family. I prefer to believe that we are a family that St. Francis has adopted and presented to the Immaculate for her care and protection.

Tuesday morning, Brother Jay awoke with a heck of a cold. His head felt as if it were the size of a melon. Staying awake was very difficult. Even being sick was a beautiful experience. The brothers took very good care of their father superior. They brought him breakfast in bed. While everyone went about his business, Brother Leo (just like the original) sat with the superior making him tea and bringing him toast with cheese and honey. It was awesome.
Wednesday night was a very interesting night. If our detachment from material things was ever put to the test, it was Wednesday. Two brothers went to the local perpetual adoration chapel just a few blocks from the mother house. Before they left their car, a rather loud noise was heard. Brother Jay thought that one of those pesky critters had knocked off another coconut from an adjacent palm tree and that we had been hit. Brother Bernardo thought that we had been shot at. He propped the door open and peeked. At that point, Brother Jay asked him what he was looking for and Brother Bernardo explained, to which Brother Jay responded, “When someone is shooting at you, you don’t get up to check out who it is. You duck, not stand.” There were no snipers to be seen. However, the rear glass of the car came crashing down into a million pieces of what can be falsely sold as diamonds. I had never seen glass in such small pieces. Of course, it was the coldest night of the cold_thermometer year in South Florida, with temperatures in the 40s.

To us, 40 degrees is a big deal. Realizing that we had no protection from the cold, Brother Jay proceeded to have a word with the Lord. “Did you have to pick the coldest night of the year? No wonder you don’t have many friends.”

But that didn’t stop the adorers. They left the car parked, with a big opening in the back and went into the Blessed Sacrament Chapel that remains open 24/7. There they spent a good 45 minutes with His Majesty.

This is also finals week at the local universities. We have a few brothers who are students. This is a stressful week for them. You would have never known it. They were so involved with their brothers, with the Lord and His Blessed Mother that they had everything in order on time. They prayed. They talked, played, sang songs and played games for our Immaculate Mother. We were able to ask her for the gift of inner peace and silence, rather than ask her for a specific grade. At the end of the day, one’s degree does not get us past the front door in heaven. What will get us through will be the love that we have shown to Christ, His mother and to all of those around us, especially under stress. It was beautiful to hear one brother say to another, “Please be patient with me. I’m in exam week,” and the other brother responding. “Just tell me what to do.”

One of the brothers is spending Thursday and Friday night with his biological family. Brother Jay drove him into the city, but not in the car with the broken rear glass. We had to rent another vehicle. By evening time, there were texts flying around between the brothers asking for prayers for sick relatives and friends, telling each other how much they appreciated being together on Monday evening and telling each other how much they miss the other. It all reminds me of St. John who said,

“if we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another.”

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on December 11, 2014 at 10:58 PM Leave a Comment

“Walk in my presence . . . ,” Brother begins his journey

The journey of a consecrated brother in the Franciscans of Life has several steps. At the beginning they seem to move very quickly and then they slowly settle down. That’s because the early steps are short. As the child learns to walk, he takes wider steps.

Let’s follow the journey of Br. Bernardo. It began at Baptism when his parents and godparents promised to raise him in the Catholic faith and he was washed clean of Original Sin by the waters of Baptism and initiated into the Catholic Church. He would later make his First Holy Communion and then be confirmed, concluding his initiation into the faith.

But God does not stop working with us on the day of our Confirmation. On that day, He is finished with the initial part of the process. Then began the next step. Like any other man, Bernardo had to find his place in the Church. After a few years involved in campus ministry and debating Traditionalist points on Catholic Answers Forums, he met the Franciscans of Life. This dialogue/debate between Bernardo and Br. Jay went from 2012 to the September 2013. It was almost one year.

Br. Jay invited Bernardo to attend a workshop on the Church’s teachings on the life issues with an introduction to Project Joseph.

This is the young man who entered the door on June 14, 2013 at 9:00 AM. He was very friendly, but reserved and very guarded. Almost wondering, “What’s a nice boy like me doing in a place like this?”

That didn’t last very long. Bernardo can’t keep quiet more than 20 minutes at a time and remaining distant is against his nature. This is a man who is naturally oriented toward others. This became obvious very quickly, especially as he and Brother Christopher Thomas enjoyed some coffee and donut.

But God was not finished. Later, Brother Jay would ask Bernardo to visit a family meeting with the Franciscans of Life. When the meeting ended, he was excited and happy, like a kid who has just been told that he got an A on a math exam. He continued to attend the family meetings.

On August 23, 2014, Brother Jay decided to risk it and invited Bernardo to enter the aspirancy program. Brother still had reservations. But he put it all in the hands of the Immaculate. On the 24th of August, Bernardo accepted the invitation and was received as an aspirant on August 25, 2014.

The aspirants receive a white shirt and a Tau pin that they wear on their collar

On October 27, 2014, Brother Jay found himself at prayer in front of the Immaculate. As usual, he prayed for all of his brothers, secular and consecrated; aspirants, postulants, novices and professed. He was very tired and his eyes started to close. As if in a state between asleep and awake he clearly saw Bernardo’s face.

“Is that whom you want me to call for you,” Brother Jay asked the Immaculate. “But Mother, there are some complications, because he’s a doctoral student and I don’t yet know his family,” Brother Jay told the Immaculate. “Please give me a sign that I’m understanding you correctly.”

Suddenly, the sleepiness vanished and Brother Jay started to laugh. He was not sure what was going to happen next, but he was sure of one thing. He had a message to deliver for the Immaculate. It didn’t make a difference whether Bernardo believed it or not. Brother never promised the Immaculate and she never demanded that Bernardo would believe the message. He was to deliver the invitation to enter the Franciscans of Life. The Immaculate had already placed a strategy in Brother Jay’s mind how Bernardo would be a postulant and finish his degree. On October 29, 2014, Brother Jay delivered the message and the plan that the Immaculate had put into his mind. In less than 24 hours, Bernardo accepted the invitation.

After consulting with the brothers, the date was set. Bernardo would be invested in the seraphic robe on November 17, 2014 the Feast of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, patroness of the Brothers and Sisters of Penance, whose rule the Franciscans of Life follow. Brothers have to be invested in the name they received at baptism, when they become novices, a new name is assigned to them. That evening, he became a Student Brother, in the FFV. Assisting in the investiture was Mrs. Angela, Bernardo’s mother and Brother Christopher Thomas, whom Bernardo had chosen as his sponsor and witness.

The habit and all the pieces come in a plastic bag. Brother Chris was holding the bag, handing Mrs. Torres one piece at a time. When he handed her the Seraphic Tunic she said, “Que emoción,” which Spanish means “I’m so moved.”

There is no such thing as an investiture without comic relief. We had to take off Bernardo’s shirt to throw the tunic over his head. But Bernardo just stood there as his mother and one of us fiddled with the tiny buttons on his shirt. Finally, Brother Jay said, “Oh for goodness sake. You can help us, you know.” The buttons were tiny.

But all worked out well. At the end of the investiture, Brother, his mother, the brothers and some of his friends who attended took pictures and offered Brother their best wishes.

One thing that the new postulant has to be able to do, besides dress himself is to explain each piece of his habit. The grey was chosen because it was the original color worn by St. Francis and the early brothers. The tunic stops at midcalf, because that how many Italian peasants wore them in the 13th century. The cowl (hood) was worn for warmth and the scapular of Our Lady we have added over the years in honor of the Immaculate who appeared to St. Simon Stock wearing the clothes of a peasant woman, undyed brown wool for her tunic and apron (scapular) and undyed white wool for the mantle.

The postulant’s habit is held together by a leather belt as a reminder that St. Francis also started his journey wearing a leather belt, before he gave it up for a piece of rope. The cord is received when one enters the novitiate.

Over the heart, every Franciscan of Life wears the Tau just as St. Francis drew it on his habit when he first learned of its meaning. Postulants and novices wear a wooden Tau, while professed wear a bronze Tau. The red cord that holds the Tau in place reminds us of the Passion of Christ to which we have a special devotion. Finally, there are things to do around the house. This postulant’s first assignment was to learn how to cook.

Each step is recorded in our family’s chronicles and witnessed by two people other than the superior. Bernardo had chosen Brother Chris as one of his witnesses, Brother Jay chose Bernardo’s mother to be her son’s second witness, something that does not happen too often. The journey of a new Franciscan of Life only begins here. There is still much to learn and many steps to be walked. There is a one year novitiate and at least three years of temporary vows.

You too can walk this path. Think about it.

Enjoy the pictures.

Let’s see if the oven is ready.

Making Mom’s sauce — “Where is she when I need her?”

Figuring out how to cook a precooked lasagna

Getting the lasgna ready for the oven.

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on December 3, 2014 at 2:49 PM Leave a Comment

Listen attentively, not aggressively

The subject of the family is central to any discussion of the Gospel and society. God has always chosen to reveal Himself through the family. He created Adam and Eve as parents to the human family. He called Abram and Sarai to become mother and father of many nations. He brought Moses out of his biological family, grafting him to a royal Egyptian family so as to bring His Israelite family out of slavery. He raised the royal family of David from which he would take human nature in the Holy Family at Bethlehem. His told Mary “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee,” (Mt. 28:10). Throughout salvation history, God has spoken to the world through family life and from within the family.

The Franciscans of Life, though we are a very small and young family, are not less or more Catholic than our other Catholic brothers and sisters. Christ calls us to live the Gospel in the manner that St. Francis of Assisi lived it. Building on the experience of St. Francis, we believe that Christ also calls us to remind the world that the Gospel is a gospel of life.

To proclaim the Gospel of Life, one must proclaim the Gospel of the Family. It is in the family where Life calls out to life (Vita ad vitam vocat). If we follow the Gospel, we must accept that human life begins within the context of family. Every human being has a dignity that protects his right to be conceived, nurtured and born into a family. He has a right to protection, formation, and to receive care from a family. At the end of life, he has the right to die naturally in the arms of his family.

From within the natural family, God calls men and women to form new and younger families, as well as families of brothers and sisters who consecrate their lives to live according to the Gospel. Such a consecration can take different expressions, from monastic, religious order, society of apostolic life, secular institute, diocesan hermits to consecrated virgins. To the degree that these associations reproduce the relationship between Christ and his apostles, whom he calls “my brothers”, these are real families. They foreshadow family life in the Kingdom of God beginning with the Trinitarian family.

These thoughts help us who are trying to follow the extraordinary synod on the family with great interest. Our Catholic identity comes from feeling with the Church. We’re not talking about feeling emotional. We’re talking about loving God and man with the Church. To do so, we must know what the Church is thinking.

Here is where we must draw an important line. We, brothers, remind ourselves that a synod is a listening session for the Holy Father and from that session will come ideas that the Holy Father will consider for the ordinary synod in October 2015. The Holy Father will exercise his authority once he has all of the information on hand.

Because the synod has no authority, it all rests with the pope. The brothers are not alarmed by some of the statements that the media alleges that some bishops have made, nor are we alarmed by those that we know some bishops have made. The Church cannot change revealed truth.

As stated above, to proclaim the Gospel of Life one must proclaim the Gospel of the Family. However, it is not we who decide what the Gospel says or does not say. It’s the teaching magisterium of the pope that teaches us what the Gospel says. It’s important to listen carefully to what the bishops are telling the pope about family; because when all of this discussion is over and done with, the pope will probably issue a post synod exhortation that will carry the weight of the Church’s teaching authority. Listening carefully requires that we withhold reacting to what is being said until the pope speaks.

We don’t have to agree with every idea that the bishops put on the table. The pope invited them to be honest and candid. When you have that kind of openness, you’re going to have to put up with a degree of chaos and nonsense as well. We cannot have open dialogue without crisis. There is no such thing. An open dialogue invites all parties to re-examine what we believe and give respectful thought to what we have never thought about before. This includes those of us who are not in Vatican City right now. Not only should synod participants be listening attentively, every Catholic must listen attentively and resist the temptation to judge, condemn, and bash anyone who says something that sounds wrong to us.

There are always some challenges. These are what lead to crisis or struggle. The speaker may be wrong. The person may be quoted incorrectly. The statement may be sloppy so that it does not accurately reflect what the person is really thinking. The idea may need to be expressed using tighter language so that it avoids ambiguity.

The Franciscans of Life are listening, assessing what makes sense and what sounds outrageous. Regarding that which sounds outrageous, we are not pointing fingers at any bishop or cardinal. We are not labeling anyone a Modernist, conservative, liberal or traditionalist. We are not sounding the alarm of apostasy among the bishops. On the contrary, if it sounds outrageous to our ears, we try to understand why it sounds outrageous to us. The statement may truly be outrageous or we may be hearing it incorrectly.

In the meantime, the Franciscans of Life continue to pray for the pope, the synod fathers, the family and the world. We continue to hold on to what the Church has traditionally taught us about the family; but we are open to the fact that there are always new experiences that help us better understand what God is saying to us about Himself and our salvation. These experiences should not be ignored. Very often, new experiences contribute to our understanding of doctrine. They don’t change the doctrine, but they can enhance our comprehension.

We invite other Catholics to listen attentively. Be faithful to what the Church has always taught and be honest and humble enough to admit when we realize that we can still be taught more. No one ever reaches a ceiling of understanding of God and his divine plan for the human family. Let us avoid characterizations, name calling, judging people, and self-righteousness. Let us embrace the truth that the Church has taught using whatever experience can help us better understand the truth.

At the end of the day, we’re looking for the truth that God has revealed to us about the family. We want to understand whatever there is out there to be understood, not just pieces here and there. If we ignore those whom we consider to be on the Jesus and boy opposite side of the house, how would we know that we truly understand what God is revealing to us? To understand we must listen, ask questions, separate the reasonable from the unreasonable, truth from falsehood, and Gospel from fashion. Only then will we be on the right path toward achieving our ultimate goal, to know God, serve God and love Him with all of our heart, mind, body and soul, here and in eternity.

Let us listen attentively, not aggressively.

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on October 18, 2014 at 1:32 AM Comments (3)

“Honey! I’m home.”

OK, so Brother Jay is back in the hospital, excuse me, it’s his timeshare. 🙂

He was rushed in by ambulance on Tuesday morning, not doing well at all. Most of the day was spent in restlessness. On Tuesday night, Brother Christopher Thomas visited and Brother Jay brightened up. They had a great visit together with lots of comments and laughter. In the meantime, the nurse was keeping a

Br. Christopher Thomas, FFV

close eye on things, which neither brother observed.

On Wednesday, the calls, text messages, and emails from the other brothers kept pouring in. Wednesday evening Aspirant Bernardo visited Brother. Every time Brother Jay heard

Br. Jay, FFV & Aspirant Bernardo, FFV

from one of his brothers, he smiled. There was a warm feeling inside that is difficult to explain. However, as I have always said, “If you experience peace and joy in a particular space, call out like Ricky Ricardo, ‘Honey! I’m home’.” This space need not be an actual physical place. It can also be a relationship. Brotherhood is definitely a relationship that happens in many spaces.

Real brotherhood does not need explanations. Remember the saying. “Preach always, when necessary use words.” Your relationship with your brothers should speak of the relationship within the Trinity, the relationship between Christ and his apostles, your relationship with Christ and with his people.

While Bernardo and Chris were visiting, nurses and therapists were entering and leaving the room. But the charge nurse was the same for both nights. She had observed Brother Jay every time he was in contact with a brother, personally or by way of technology.

As Bernardo was leaving, she could no longer hold back her question. She asked the two brothers (Bernardo and Jay) “Are you guys always this happy when you’re together?” To which they both answered, “Yes.” Brother Jay quickly added, he’s my little brother. Everyone chuckled as Bernardo and the nurse left. But now follows the good part.

Brothers keep their superior company as he catches his breadth.

The nurse was watching. No sooner had Bernardo turned the corner, she quickly snuck into Brother’s room and asked again. “You guys seem to really enjoy each other’s company. I noticed it last night too. Is the other gentleman related to you?” The other gentleman is Brother Chris.

“Yes, he’s another brother,” said Brother Jay.

“I hate to be nosy, but I noticed that you talked to some people on the telephone and received some texts while I’ve been in here and you light up. The medicine must be working.” How’s that for subtle?

Brother responded, “Well, I think that the medication is working, but the most important part of the therapy is not the chemical, but the human element. You see those two chaps whom you’ve met?”

Nod.

“And the texts and telephone calls?”

Nod.

“Those are all my brothers. There are seven of us. We’re not biological brothers. The bond is tighter than that. We were not coincidently born into the same family. God called us and we freely responded. We belong to a very small family.” He then went on to explain Franciscans to a curious person who is Protestant and who believed that Catholics never use the bible. When she heard the Franciscan brotherhood is built upon revealed truth, starting with Sacred Scripture, she was in awe.

This led to questions about celibacy vs marriage. Brother quickly dispelled this myth.

Celibacy and marriage are not in competition. They are ways of life. The best way of life is the one where you find peace and joy. Sometimes, we get so fixated on one way of life, usually marriage, that we never hear God’s proposal to a marriage between His Son and our soul. Very often, God will throw a monkey wrench into our plans to remind us that he has a plan of his own. However, God does not impose, he proposes, like an insistent lover. At the end of the day, we choose celibacy or marriage.

Brother then explained that the brothers come in two wrappers, married and celibate. Brotherhood is not defined by the way you live out God’s invitation to holiness.

Brotherhood is defined by joy, a sense of belonging, mutual respect, tolerance for each other’s weaknesses and eccentricities, and intimacy (allowing the other brother to walk through the corridors of your heart). If you find peace and joy in this experience then you have arrived where you belong right now.

We’re sharing this with you because Brother Chris made a prophetic statement. When Brother Jay told him that he may have a longer visit to the hospital, Chris said “Maybe God wants you to do some hospital ministry.” Every time Jay is in the hospital, something draws in some of the staff and questions begin. Up to that point, nothing had happened. Chris was referring to these past experiences. In a few hours, this wonderful dialogue with the nurse took place.

It all began and ended with “being rather than doing”. Being joyful brothers rather than busy brothers, is the greatest witness to the Gospel and the greatest sign that one has arrived home.

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on October 16, 2014 at 12:10 PM Leave a Comment

Franciscans of Life

Vita ad vitam vocat

Transformation

True and charitable obedience — pleasing to God and neighbor

Thank you!

Walking for Life

“Good night, son!”

Can you help?

As He is in the light . . .

“Walk in my presence . . . ,” Brother begins his journey

Listen attentively, not aggressively

“Honey! I’m home.”

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